Bigeye Trevallies Schooling, Cabo Pulmo National Park, Cabo San Lucas, Baja Peninsula, Mexico

The bigeye trevally predominantly live in inshore coastal waters, although does occur in pelagic settings far offshore, and around remote islands and seamounts. The species is known to reach depths of around 100 m. It is mostly found over coral and rocky reef complexes as adults, however often moves into more inshore areas in sandy bays and lagoons in small numbers. Those that live offshore often live on deeper seamounts or reefs around offshore islands. The species moves with the tide in some regions, entering shallow lagoonal areas as the tide rises, and moving back to the deeper reefs as it retreats. Juveniles inhabit more inshore, shallower waters around the coast, often venturing into lagoons, tidal flats, mangrove zones and even estuaries. Juvenile bigeye trevally have been reported in rivers from several locations, and are known to penetrate well into the upper reaches of rivers. As the fish grows, it moves back to deeper waters over reefs. The species has been reported in pelagic open ocean settings, milling around stationary buoys, indicating the species may follow floating debris far out to sea.
Biology
The bigeye trevally is a schooling species, known to form aggregations consisting of more than 1500 fish. The species is often seen in these large schools either stationary or slowly moving around the reef complexes they inhabit during the day. At night, these schools dissolve, and the species become active, taking most of its prey during the nocturnal period. This contrasts to most jacks, which are generally diurnal hunters, although the species has been documented hunting in shallower waters during the day, especially as juveniles. The abundance of the species on the west coast of America has been linked to the occurrence of El Nino or La Nina climate events, with the abundance significantly dropping during El Nino events.